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Thursday, July 21, 2011

Review of THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS and Super ARC Giveaway...Another One

I actually read this book a while ago, but I've been waiting to review this until it got a little closer to its launch date--mainly, I wanted this book to be fresh in your mind for the release. Because you MUST READ THIS. It's not an order. Just, you know, a really strong suggestion. Look into my eyes...you are getting sleepy.

No, seriously, check it out.

Me with Derek Molata, TGOFAT ARC, and Brad Beaulieu

This is the ARC cover, which if you win this book, you will get. See below for the other hot ARCs you can win.

Okay, so first my review:

THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNSby Rae Carson

Summary: Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness.Elisa is the chosen one.But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can’t see how she ever will. Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess.And he’s not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.Most of the chosen do.

MY REVIEW
YES. A fantasy YA with a strong heroine that is not also perfect. Elisa doesn't have the ideal body, astonishing self-control, confidence disguised as razor sharp wit, or all the answers. She doesn't always know what to say, she overeats and overindulges and gives in to bouts of self-pity and insecurity. Which is just...right. Because most people do all of these things sometimes, especially sixteen year old girls. So how is she strong? Well, she's not at first, at least not on the surface. Elisa has to earn her strength like most people do--through trial and tribulation. Nobody is really born kickass. THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS shows us that bravery is a learned behavior. That kickassedness is not a fixed, natural trait, but an assertion that has to be made over and over--an act of sheer will and possibly even an act of defiance. And always, an act born out of necessity. How incredibly hopeful that is. I can never be like Superman. But Elisa? Possibly.

The irony is, here's this princess who is somewhat of an outcast within her own society. So while you might expect a princess to be a "chosen one," you wouldn't expect Elisa to be anything. It's like weakling Harry Potter if he knew from the get-go he were a wizard and everyone in the wizarding world thought he was kind of lame despite that scar. Elisa has to somehow overcome her own insecurities as well as the doubts of everyone else to fulfill a prophecy to save all their hides. And then she discovers that not everyone believes in the prophecy in the same way she does, so suddenly her faith, which has been her constant companion and her greatest strength, is tested most of all. There are no easy answers, no obvious choices or hidden paths that Elisa just isn't seeing. It's a complicated world of grays where she has to learn as much as she can and rely on her instincts and her faith for answers. Pretty realistic in that regard--and in many other ways.

While THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS is indeed a fantasy, I sort of kept forgetting that. It reads almost like a kickass historical with paranormal elements. Yes, there are some freaky-cool things in this world, but it feels inspired by real-life elements. It wasn't your typical medieval feeling fantasy, but rather felt sort of like an amalgamation of Latin and Middle Eastern cultures with a YA fantasy twist. The descriptions are rock solid--so, so vivid, I could nearly feel the grit of sand against my skin--with a world that is rich with detailed history, religion, monarchy, and paranormal mythos. But while the world building is remarkable, the characterization is easily a highlight with fully fleshed, complex characters. The overweight girl is not one to pity and the pretty, charming girl is not one to hate. This is bigger than that. Like I said, a complicated world of grays, just like ours. Even love feels complicated in this, and thus authentic. It's not a matter of love at first sight, but love as a choice.

THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS is intense, full of emotional twists and unexpected plot turns, riveting to the end. Will be available September 20, 2011.

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ANOTHER 3 ARC GIVEAWAY

I'm offering up these books, okay? Click on their covers for pop-up Goodreads summaries.

GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNSby Rae Carson

See my review above! Please note, the ARC in the giveaway has a different cover.

THE ELEVENTH PLAGUE by Jeff Hirsch

I read this one entirely on the plane ride home from New Orleans. It's amazing. So real and scary and just...un-put-downable. I'll get a full review up for this in a few days.

LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR by Stephanie Perkins

I haven't yet finished this one, but Ahhh! Whipping through it. It might possibly be even better than ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS. Not sure yet. That one is hard to top. But I'll try to get a full review up for this soon, too.

This 3 ARC Giveaway is international.Ends on Thursday, July 28, 2011. Must be 13 years or older to enter. Under 18's must have parent/guardian permission. If you win, you will need to provide an address for shipment.

Click Here to Enter Another Three ARC International Giveaway

EDIT (28July11): The jotform site is giving me a load of trouble. If you are having issues entering the giveaway with the above link, but would still like to enter, please fill out the form below. Your entry will be recorded in a separate document only I can see (not on this blog). If you have already entered via the link above or in my comment section, no need to fill out the form again. I've already recorded your entry. Thanks for your support of these authors and of my blog!

Note: You may have to click on the down arrow key to scroll to the submit button on the form. Thanks!

ENTRY FORM REMOVED. THIS GIVEAWAY HAS CLOSED. THANKS FOR ENTERING!

Also, if you haven't yet done so, be sure to enter to win my first 3 ARC giveaway for AFTER OBSESSION by Carrie Jones and Steven E Wedel, PETER NIMBLE by Jonathan Auxier, and THE BEGINNING OF AFTER by Jennifer Castle. This giveaway ends Saturday, July 23. EDIT: This giveaway is now closed. Winners were posted HERE.

Congratulations, winners! Please send me an address to which I can ship your ARC. Thank you so much to all who entered! Your support of these authors and of my blog means loads to me. I'll have winners posted ASAP for the giveaway that closed last night. I'm also preparing another giveaway to go up really soon. It's pretty...major.

Awesome review! It's always refreshing to have someone who isn't perfect because it's so much easier to relate to that character. And because you can relate it's so much more inspiring to watch them become more confident and brave despite their flaws. That's what this sounds like! I've been hearing some really awesome things about this book and I can not wait to read it.

OoH, ooh! I've wanted this book (Girl of fire and thorns) since I heard about it. I also want to read Lola and the Boy next door - I've heard so much for the writer and still haven't got my hands on some of her work!

This was a great and thoughtful review! I'm usually not drawn towards fantasy, and probably would have skipped over this in the bookstore, but you've totally convinced me I need to read this. Thanks for another awesome giveaway!

O. M. G. !!! Lola Lola Lola Lola ..... I want Lola! Have I told you how awesome you are?... I haven't.... well, you are. Like to infinity and beyond :)haha! Thank you so much for this awesome chance to win!

I'm halfway through The Girl of Fire and Thorns and I have to say I'm struggling. Your review made me want to push through to the end, so thanks for that! Also, thanks for the super awesome giveaway! :)

I haven't heard much about The Girl of Fire and Thorns, but your review definitely got me interested! Everyone seems to be in love with Lola and the Boy Next door and it seems like a perfect summer read :) But what got me the most interested is actually the Eleventh Plague... I love scary books and I am looking forward to your review of it! :) Thanks for the chance!

Thanks for giving away free books. I'm a big fan of free books. I also might have an error in my entry form. Somehow what I was typing in another window (computers are so weird) got put in my box for number of entries. (I should have 12). I'm sorry that happened. v_v

So glad you enjoyed The Girl of Fire and Thorns so much. And thanks a ton for the amazing giveaway! I'm hoping to go to the Decatur Book Festival and Jeff and Stephanie are both supposed to be there so that'd be uber cool to win these!

Ooh! I love fantasy! It's such a shame that the genre kinda...shrunk.Anna and the French Kiss was amazing! And, awesomely, the 11th Plague was blurbed by the one and only Suzanne Collins!Thanks so much, Carolina!

You are awesome for giving away these awesome books! I especially went gaga at seeing LOLA in the giveaway!

I'm not sure how to @reply you on FB so here's the FB link I posted about the contest: http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=253266468017349&id=825115Tweet: http://twitter.com/#!/nodizzies/status/94151016831913985Blog: http://nodizzies.livejournal.com/26842.html

Thank you so much, everyone! I'm so glad to see you stop by and leave comments. Your support for Rae and Jeff and Stephanie is just fantastic--and your support for my blog means so much to me. My warmest thanks! <3 <3

I have been dying for The Girl of Fire and Thorns. I love fantasy and even if it doesn't read like that I'm still down with historical and paranormal because I love them too. While I've been pining after the book I haven't actually read someones review of it before so I'm extremely grateful because now I know what to expect. And it sounds like the wait will be worth it. Thank you!

"The Eleventh Plague" by Jeff Hirsch sounds really good. I am a big fan of David Moody and Joe McKinney. Yeah I know that this is not about Zombies or the likes, but it is about a disease and its complications afterwards...

Wonderful review! I'm dying to read The Girl of Fire and Thorns and the Eleventh Plague. Jeff Hirsch is really interesting. We featured him at a blog event earlier this year. Thank you for the review and the giveaway!

Wow, this book sounds amazing!! I have been dying to get my hands on it. Although I do prefer the original cover to the updated one, much prettier! I've been on a fantasy kick lately too, so I cannot wait for this one!

And OMG you're reading LOLA!!! *tries to stomp down on jealousy* Thanks so much for the amazing giveaway!

More great books. Now I can add some more to my TBR pile. I need to get a bookshelf now to hold the new ones I have acquired. I am lucky that I have a ton on my Nook. It doesn't take up as much space, but I love a paper copy gliding through my fingers. I think I always have three books going at once. One on my Nook, a hard copy and one on the computer or iPhone. Love it.

I was up until midnight last night reading "Anna and the French Kiss" and I'm positively in lurrrrve with Stephanie Perkins' writing. I would love to win her ARC as I am quite an impatient girl and can't wait until the real deal is in print. The other books sound wonderful too. Totally jealous of your trip, Carole! You rock!!

Yikes! My apologies, guys. I've been trying to fix the form, it's it's giving me a load of trouble. If you leave a comment with your email, I'll go ahead and enter you. You get an additional points +1 for commenting (so 2 points right off the bat). And you can earn:

+2 for FB post+3 tweeting+5 for blog post+3 for sidebar post.

You get one entry just for entering your name. But if you are an old follower, add +4. New followers, add +3. If you don't feel comfortable leaving an email in the comment section, please just shoot me a separate email with your entry. I'm SO SO sorry for the dumb trouble. Stupid jotform.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns was my first try at historical fiction AND Fantasy, and i gotta admit, I like the combination! I applaud Rae Carson for choosing a non standard protagonist. Looking back, i was very shocked with the description of the protagonist.. an overweight, young princess with family issues. Good to know that in the land of princesses, not everyone is a carbon copy of cinderella or snow white.